Netflix's "Veronica" - Initial Thoughts On Netflix's New 'Scariest Movie Ever'

Whenever a film is marketed as the scariest movie ever, I'm a bit wary.

I've seen movies like "It Follows", "Paranormal Activity", and even "Blair Witch Project", movies followed by strong marketing campaigns and copious amounts of cultural buzz. However, movies that have the label 'scariest movie ever' have always, without fail, bored me.

This might come down to what the general public think is scary vs. what regular spooky movie watchers think is scary. To me, these movies have a lot of long, slow shots and a lot of silence. People are left on the edge of their seats, waiting for that all too famous jumpscare. I'm not going to pretend I'm the manliest man alive and act like I'm immune to jumpscares - but most horror movie watchers are aware that what makes a horror movie effective is the same thing that makes all movies effective (a good plot, good characters, good pacing and great atmosphere).

So I'm going to sit down and watch this movie and see if it can break the mould. It's marketed as a possession-type horror movie, so it's already off to a good start, as these ones are a personal favourite of mine.

The Review

Initially, the first thing that pops out to me is the sound design.

The movie begins with some fantastic sound design. We hear the sounds of chaos in the titular character's apartment, interlaced with sounds of police, rain and dark, suspenseful music.

After that, this movie falls into the 'art' horror movie trope of bad dynamics. This is where a movie is so desperate to be frightening that the character's voices are artificially quietened in the mix and the jump scares are louder in comparison. Luckily, this movie has subtitles, so you don't have to turn the volume up and risk destroying your ears. I appreciate a good jump scare, but this movie doesn't have too many of those. It has plenty of jump scares - but not very good ones. There is a point where the protagonist is frightened by her sister appearing behind her, and the jump scare stab plays seconds after she comes into the frame - almost like it was by accident.

The score is interesting, but not always in a good way. It's interlaced with Goblin-style electronic music (people who have seen a few 80s B-movies might know what I'm talking about). In stark contrast to this, the film has a large, dramatic orchestral score and a few Spanish-language indie rock tracks. The music is sometimes quite effective, but it can come in at the most innapropriate times. A dark, suspenseful moment might be layered with a giant, cheesy orchestra score. Likewise, sad, dramatic moments are paired with uninteresting electronic tracks.

Secondly, the cinematography is great. There isn't much I can say that was wrong with it - every shot in this movie is a dynamic masterpiece. Some scenes are dark and realistically lit, while others have dynamic colours that play with the imagination quite nicely.

The plot is so-so. It has a bit of a generic possession-film vibe. Remember how zombie movies were really popular after 2010? And people were getting sick of it? Well this movie is centered around a ouija board. I think we've had enough of that but apparently Hasbro has their money on the whole spooky film industry. The movie also makes prominent use of a Simon toy.

However, this movie isn't really about ghosts and possession. Just like "The Babadook" is about a single mother, "Jaws" is about a man having a midlife crisis, and even, "It Follows" is about sexual abuse, "Veronica" is a coming of age story. If you took away the ghosts and possessions, "Veronica" would still be quite compelling, despite being a bit dark.

The characters are a bit dry and the actors a bit dull, but it never gets so bad that it loses your attention or even sympathy for what is happening.

Finally, the ending is pretty good. It has a nice twist - not "Sixth Sense" level but it's still quite clever and it's refreshing to watch.

Overall, I would recommend this movie specifically to people who enjoy possession movies and aren't quite yet over the ouija trope. On the other hand, I watched "Ouija: Origin of Evil" when it came out and honestly, preferred it over this, so if you're new to the genre, check that one out. "Veronica" is more forgiving than "It Follows", "Paranormal Activity" and "The Blair Witch Project", and definitely more watchable, but I wouldn't watch it twice.

TL, DR: This movie has some scary moments, but it's not the scariest movie ever. Shock.

Rating:
7/11